Pop-up decorations for pastries have been known for many years. For example, a U.S. Pat. No. 2,233,119 of M. Anderson discloses a pop-up decoration which provides a surprise for festive occasions. The decoration disclosed therein includes a short candle which when lit will burn for a short time and then permit a furled banner to be projected out of the top of a tube which carries the candle.
A more recent pop-up candle device is disclosed in the U.S. Pat. No. 3,586,320 of John Mason. That device includes inner and outer spring biased telescoping sections. The inner section carries a candle mounted thereon and a pivotal arm carrying a furled banner which is concealed within the telescoping sections when the sections are compressed or telescoped. Then the pivotal arm is free to swing downward when the sections are extended and the banner unfurls.
It is presently believed that there may be a significant commercial market for an improved pop-up decoration which is relatively simple in design and which can be sold for a nominal price. It is also believed that a pop-up candle decoration according to the present invention can be made of relatively inexpensive materials, made at a modest cost and at the same time provide a festive pop-up surprise for festive occasions. The flame or heat actuated pop-up decorations in accordance with the present invention are also adaptable for different occasions and readily customized for an individual event. In addition, the decorations can be manufactured in very small sizes and are relatively lite in weight so that they can be used as decorations for birthday cakes or the like and readily removed therefrom before cutting the cake. The decorations are also readily disposable and in this sense are environmentally friendly.